Grandma's House

Steve and I used our three day holiday to go visit my grandma in California. We enjoyed a little sunshine, a little rain, and the company of family. We ate San Fransisco sour dough bread and dewberries with rice pudding...my favorites! And of course there were plenty of Yahtzee games. I love visiting my grandma. She is so delightful to be with. I also love her home. Her house is so cozy and full of great old memories. I love sitting on her porch and listing to the muffled sounds of train whistles and bell chimes from the nearby church. No matter where I live, I am always home when I visit Grandma.

On Saturday, we drove into the city and visited Golden Gate park.

Japanese Tea Garden.

We also visited the Conservatory of Flowers that was featuring the "Wicked Plants: Botanical Rouges and Assassins" exhibit of deadly flora. Very creepy.

And of course we had to visit the Golden Gate Bridge.

U2!

Steve and I have been waiting a long, long time for this U2 concert. We bought tickets for the 2010 show which was canceled due to an ailing band member...specifically Bono. So we waited for them to come again in 2011 but this time Steve was scheduled to be at a work training in Omaha that same week! So disappointing. So my dear friend Megan got to join me. Yeah! We had a great time, the concert was amazing, but we wimped out and left a little early. We were tired and our ears were ringing because the music was sooo loud. We must be getting old. The stage was pretty incredible.

The giant mirror ball on top of the stage was very cool. It filled the entire stadium with little circles of moving light.
More awesomeness.

Field of Peeps

Even though Peeps are not necessarily my favorite tasting Easter candy, I still love them and must have them for Easter! I love their bright pink and yellow sugar, their cute little faces, the way they stick to Easter grass, random loose candy in your basket, and each other. I love that they taste better when they get a little stale and how they look all lined up in a row. They are an important part of my Easter celebration and so Steve will buy some for my basket even though he thinks I'm crazy. I might be.

He even found some chocolate mousse flavored Peeps dipped in dark chocolate. Okay, those were amazing! You would be crazy not to love them.

This year I wanted to try something different with the Peeps...so I decided to roast them! And {hold breath here} it was awesome! The outside got crispy as the sugar melted and the inside mallow turned into creamy bliss. I even liked how they puffed up and became strangely deformed. Yes, this was a good idea.

I think my dad liked it too!

Birthday Celebration!

For Steve's birthday I surprised him with a snowmachining trip at Daniel's Summit in Heber. We spent 4 hours enjoying the spectacular beauty of the earth and of course the super speedy snowmachines. It had been snowing all week but on Saturday is was blue skys and sunshine! The landscape was so beautiful, full of new white fluffy snow, aspen trees, evergreen trees and vast vistas covered in a dusting of powdered sugar. It was a great way to celebrate Steve and what an awesome husband he is.

No sign of Spring

We had high hopes of snowshoeing to the top (or near the top) of Mt. Nebo on Saturday but all the roads were still closed. So instead we walked to Maple Lake which was beautiful. It had been snowing all morning but cleared up just long enough for us to enjoy being outside for a few hours. We are starting to get really antsy and anxious for spring to get here and although the snow is beautiful, we are ready for some sunshine!!

Weekend Fun!

April and Andy came to visit us this weekend. Yea! To keep them entertained we took them to the Wheeler Farm near our house for a little Bocce ball, goose stalking, goat petting and kite flying. I think they liked it.

I think I need to mention here that Steve and I beat Team A&A in all three games. We are the Bocce champions of the world!

April was the best at goose stalking. That goose had no idea it was being followed.

Awe, look how excited he is to be flying a fish kite.

Thanks for coming to visit! Come again!

What is that?

TVP. Textured Vegetable Protein. It is most often used as a meat substitute. Made from soy, it is full of protein and contains no fat. It comes in flakes, chunks, grains and needs to be rehydrated before consuming. Sound appetizing?

We got some TVP for Christmas and haven’t been brave enough to try it. Last night we got home from work and found our cupboards bare - except for the ingredients for tacos…minus the meat of course. So it seemed a perfect time to try out our TVP.

We were surprised that it wasn’t half bad. It basically tasted like the taco seasoning we put in it and not much else. We have been trying to find ways to eat less meat and this was a good option. Steve said he would eat it again so I guess we will be hunting down some good TVP recipes for the future.

The big AZ!

Last weekend Steve and I were in Tucson, Arizona for his annual work conference. This year's theme was "Cowboys" so cowboy and cowgirl attire was required. We did our best. Luckily my dear friend Merissa loaned me those totally awesome red boots which were a big hit and admittedly quite fun to wear. I might need some of my own.

We had great weather on the first day, I even got a little color while sitting by the pool but by the time we left it was snowing...which only happens in Tucson once every 7 or 8 years. So much for escaping the cold. I did get a quick hike in while Steve was in meetings and at the peak of the hill I climbed I could see into the Saguaro National Forest. All the crazy cacti reminded me of my days living in the Arizona desert. Good memories.

{cactus hiking trail with resort in the background}

{this Saguaro cactus had to be at least 30 feet tall!}

{Ye-haw!}

Happy Valentine's Day!

From ↑ Katrina and ........Steve ↑ !

Ice Castles in Midway.

Jump start my heart.

I wasn't surprised that the rolls I made today didn't rise because I can never get dough to rise in my apartment but I was surprised when I reached into the dish to pull out the freshly baked rolls and it EXPLODED right in front of me. Yikes!!!

Note: No people were harmed while making these rolls.

Ski Day!

A sunny February ski day. It doesn't get much better than this! Pure joy!

Rescuing what's important.

I had a dream the other night that our home was about to be flooded and I had a half hour to remove anything I did not want destroyed. I ran around collecting photos, important papers, sentimental items, clothing etc. and shoved it all into 2 suitcases as our house bobbed up and down on the water like a boat. When I woke up I remembered this dream vividly and thought about all the items I did not think were important enough to save. Did I really need these items? Could I get rid of them and still live a happy and comfortable life? In other words, could I de-clutter my life by getting rid of all the unnecessary excess? It was an inspiring thought but not one I have taken into action...yet.

The next Sunday I was teaching a Sunday school lesson and we were discussing the story of the Nativity, specifically about making room for the Savior in our lives. It made me think of my dream and I wondered if the non-physical clutter in my life was taking up too much space, not leaving enough room for the Savior? Are there things I could do without in order to make room for the most important things?

So this year I am going to try to leave a little more space for my Savior in each day. Like my friend Meesh proclaimed as one of her New Year's resolutions: "Spend quiet time with Jesus daily," I want to give Him a little more wiggle room to send me more love, inspiration and guidance while I send Him a little more gratitude, faith and time.

Time to Review

Okay, I haven't made any 2011 resolutions yet but I probably should review a few of last year's to see how I did on them...

1. Sew something. Well I sewed a super hero cape for my nephew, an apron, some chicken pin cushions and I started a quilt so I'd say done and done......and I have a few more projects up my sleeve so if your birthday is coming up, get excited!

2. Buy a curling iron. Yes! So I guess this year my resolution should be to use it.

3. Go on one adventure a month. I think...yes.

4. Organize my recipes. Yes and they are so organized I was able to give a copy of my book to April for a bridal shower gift.

5. Finish the Book of Mormon with Steve. Yea! Yes!

6. Write in my journal monthly. Well, I only wrote in it once on Jan 17th, but I did blog at least once a month so does that count?

7. Visit Grandma Barney in California. We didn't make it to California this year but April pulled through for me and got married so Grandma came here to visit. Thanks April!

Breakfast anyone?

A friend brought over this treat to us on New Years Eve. New Years morning I sampled it and it was soooo gooooood that we ate all of it for breakfast. So, if your not off sweets for Jan as your New Years resolution, I highly recommend whipping up a batch.

Peanut Butter White Chocolate Popcorn
2 bags microwave popcorn (or you could use regular popcorn)
1/2 cup creamy peanut butter
1 bag white chocolate chips (2 cups)
1/2-1 cup Reeses Pieces or M&Ms

Pop the popcorn then sift through to remove all unpopped kernels. Soften the PB in the microwave over 30 seconds, stir into popcorn to coat evenly. Melt the white chocolate either in a double boiler or in the microwave (over 2 minutes on 50% power, then stir chips until smooth). Pour over popcorn and gently stir to coat popcorn evenly with chocolate. Add Reeses Pieces or M&Ms as you stir in the chocolate. Spread out popcorn on waxed paper to set. Enjoy!